Algeria Forms New Govt with Energy and Finance Ministers Unchanged

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file photo)
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file photo)
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Algeria Forms New Govt with Energy and Finance Ministers Unchanged

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file photo)
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. (AFP file photo)

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Wednesday named a new government, with the energy and finance ministers from the previous administration both keeping their jobs, the presidency said.

It said Ramdane Lamamra was appointed as foreign minister, taking over from Sabri Boukadoum.

Appointed last week as prime minister to replace Abdeaziz Djerad, Ayman Benabderrahmane, who was finance minister in the previous government, will remain in charge of finance, while Mohamed Arkab kept his job as energy minister, the presidency said in a statement read out by a spokesman on state television.

OPEC member Algeria has been trying to extract itself from a financial and economic crisis that has caused budget and trade deficits after a fall in energy export revenues, the main source of state finances.

Elected in December 2019 after mass protests forced his predecessor Abdelaziz Bouteflika to step down, Tebboune has promised to carry out political and economic reforms.

He has said most planned reforms have been delayed due to the global pandemic that deepened the crisis in Algeria and worsened its financial situation.

Tebboune’s plans involve mainly developing the non-energy sector, including agriculture, as the North African nation imports most of its food needs.

The new foreign minister, Lamamra, had held the role several times under former president Bouteflika.

Most ministers in the previous administration maintained their jobs in the new cabinet.



Trump Says He Hopes for Gaza Deal within a Week

US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn upon arrival at the White House in Washinton, DC, on July 13, 2025 after attending the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey. (Photo by Allison ROBBERT / AFP)
US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn upon arrival at the White House in Washinton, DC, on July 13, 2025 after attending the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey. (Photo by Allison ROBBERT / AFP)
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Trump Says He Hopes for Gaza Deal within a Week

US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn upon arrival at the White House in Washinton, DC, on July 13, 2025 after attending the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey. (Photo by Allison ROBBERT / AFP)
US President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn upon arrival at the White House in Washinton, DC, on July 13, 2025 after attending the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey. (Photo by Allison ROBBERT / AFP)

US President Donald Trump said Sunday he hoped talks for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas will be "straightened out" this week.

The US is backing a 60-day ceasefire with a phased release of hostages, Israeli troop withdrawals from parts of Gaza and talks to end the conflict. Trump told reporters, "We are talking and hopefully we're going to get that straightened out over the next week."

On Sunday, Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip killed at least 32 people, including six children at a water collection point, while the Palestinian death toll passed 58,000 after 21 months of war, local health officials said.
Israel and Hamas appeared no closer to a breakthrough in indirect talks meant to pause the war and free some Israeli hostages after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Washington visit last week. A sticking point has emerged over Israeli troops ' deployment during a ceasefire.
Israel says it will end the war only once Hamas surrenders, disarms and goes into exile, something it refuses to do. Hamas says it is willing to free all the remaining 50 hostages, about 20 said to be alive, in exchange for the war's end and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces.